Fuel Cell Base Seal Protrusions for Gas Tightness
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fuel cell designs face challenges in achieving effective gas and coolant sealing, which are crucial for preventing leaks and maintaining cooling functions, leading to inefficiencies and potential damage.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a membrane electrode assembly with inner and outer sealing members, a coolant channel, and protrusions on a base seal that overlap the sealing members, allowing for improved sealability and reduced thickness, enhancing both sealing performance and moldability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple sealing members (inner seal and outer seal) are disposed on separators to prevent gas leaks, then gas-tight sealing is improved, but the device complexity and thickness increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the inner seal and outer seal into a single integrated sealing member that performs both sealing functions simultaneously. This merging reduces the number of separate components while maintaining the dual sealing capability needed for gas-tight prevention, thereby reducing device complexity while preserving reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing member is designed to perform multiple sealing functions (inner sealing and outer sealing) through a single structure. This multi-functional design allows one component to replace what would traditionally require multiple separate components, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining comprehensive gas-tight sealing
2Reliability
If sealing members are made thicker to ensure reliable sealing, then sealing performance is improved, but the fuel cell thickness increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing member features variable thickness with different regions optimized for different functions: thicker portions where sealing pressure is needed most (at sealing interfaces) and thinner portions in non-critical areas. This local quality variation ensures reliable sealing performance while minimizing overall thickness contribution to the fuel cell assembly
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing member incorporates protrusions that extend into the coolant channel in the vertical dimension, providing additional sealing contact points without increasing the horizontal footprint. This dimensional approach allows enhanced sealing capability while maintaining compact overall dimensions
3Length of stationary object
If sealing members are made thinner to reduce fuel cell thickness, then device compactness is improved, but sealing performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing member is segmented into multiple functional regions including base seal portions and protruding portions that extend into the coolant channel. This segmentation allows thin overall thickness while concentrating sealing force at specific critical locations through the protrusions, maintaining sealing performance despite reduced overall dimensions
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing member utilizes the vertical dimension by incorporating protrusions that extend into the coolant channel space. This allows the seal to achieve effective sealing contact at multiple points without increasing the horizontal thickness, thereby maintaining compactness while preserving sealing reliability
4Reliability
If protrusions are added to the base seal to overlap sealing members, then sealability is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The protrusions are integrated into the base seal as a single molded piece rather than separate components. This merging of features into one manufacturing step simplifies production compared to assembling multiple separate sealing components, thereby improving ease of manufacture while achieving enhanced sealability through the protrusion geometry
Data Source
AI summary
A fuel cell includes a membrane electrode assembly and separators, an inner sealing member and an outer sealing member, a coolant channel, a base seal, an inner protrusion and an outer protrusion, and a middle protrusion. The membrane electrode assembly and the separators are stacked in a stacking direction. The inner sealing member and the outer sealing member are disposed between a first separator and a second separator. The base seal is disposed on at least one of separator surfaces between the second separator and a third separator. The inner protrusion and the outer protrusion are provided on the base seal so as to respectively overlap the inner sealing member and the outer sealing member when viewed in the stacking direction and so as to protrude between the second separator and the third separator in the stacking direction.